Essential
oils have been largely employed for human need due to their antibacterial,
antifungal and insecticidal activities. At present, approximately 3000
essential oils are known, 300 of which are commercially important. Essential
oils or some of their components are used in perfumes and make-up products,
sanitary products, dentistry, agriculture, as food preservers and additives,
and as natural remedies. The essential oil compositions of Malaysian Lauraceae
family have been investigated for many years. In the recent years, studies on
the essential oils of the species have been progressing and many of them have
reported interesting pharmacological activities. In this article, we summarized
and updated the chemical compositions and biological activities of Malaysian
Lauraceae. Throughout our literature review, only four genera which are Lindera,
Beilschmiedia, Litsea, and Cinnamomum have been studied
for their essential oil compositions in Malaysia. They were found to contain
mainly safrole, eugenol, linalool, camphor, benzyl benzoate or cinnamaldehyde
as major components. There were significant priorities to find out the details
of the chemical compositions of the essential oils from Malaysian Lauraceae.
Therefore, more clinical studies on the toxicity of the essential oil of the
species are also crucial to ensure their safety and to assess their eligibility
to be used as the sources of modern medicines.